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I have been eating Paleo since before Thanksgiving. (Except for my morning coffee which I just can't give up!!) I work out at Crossfit 4-5 times per week and play tennis another 2+ times per week. My question is - is anyone else always hungry? I have protein at every meal but can snack all through the day. I do keep my snacking to veggies, nuts or fruit but is this the norm?

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Another quick sideline question - my weight stays fairly fixed - I would like to lose my last 5 lbs - but. . . . Anyway, is everyone finding that this always being hungry hasn't hurt their weight? – Lynn Jan 10 2012 at 2:13
OP, your activity level is pretty high. Are you making sure to have plenty of sweet potatoes/yams/other good starchy tubers on your WO days? – Adulescens Appetens Jan 10 2012 at 3:19

14 Answers

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true story. similar activity level. Doesn't matter the amount of food I eat, I am always hungry. I've done the 72oz steak challenge in 45mins and ate again an hour later.

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LOL!! That's awesome!! – Lynn Jan 10 2012 at 2:11
Serious win. Pho challenge in SF? – Knarf Oct 9 at 8:11
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Your activity level sounds really high, Lynn. Up the fat intake. The hunger sounds like the frequent Crossfit / beginning-paleo situation. Saute veggies in fat, get fattier cuts of meat, drizzle everything in olive oil if you have to. Starch like sweet potato post-workout (no fat post-workout). Energy deficit from your activity could lead to higher cortisol levels, which could be the culprit if you're having issues with the last few pounds as Shari mentioned above. Good luck.

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Thanks!! Great response =) – Lynn Jan 10 2012 at 12:04
Hi Sean - I'm in a very similar position as Lynn and I get the starches after workout, but curious why no fats? I've been eating paleo for a long time, but am now adding a lot if exercise. – Jesse Jan 10 2012 at 15:20
Hey Jesse, just saw this...basically you're eating carbs (and protein) post-workout to refuel and aid in recovery, e.g. replenish muscle glycogen, and at that point you want something that will digest fairly quickly for that purpose. Fat slows down the digestion and so works against you in this case. Kind of up-is-down, black-is-white for something like 30 minutes after a workout. This is what I've learned in Crossfit, anyway, and it seems to work. – Sean Apr 27 2012 at 21:38
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Yes. I also struggle with this but for different reasons. I am trying to maintain a weight that my body clearly doesn't like though so I attribute my hunger mostly to this. I can't eat enough to eliminate hunger and maintain my weight. (I should add however that I used to be morbidly obese so my body's a little wonky and far from typical.)

For you though I guess I'd suggest you play around with the most likely suspect, fat. Add more. If that doesn't work maybe more protein is in order? Try adding CO first as that seems to be more "forgiving" than other fats.

On second thought we may not be hungry for different reasons? I just read your comment about the last 5 lbs. You may think your body has another 5 lbs to lose but your body may not agree. That will cause some hunger right there. For this situation I have no answer. If you find one please let me know.

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I think in determining this you might want to try and differentiate the two types of hunger. I was never super overweight, I just used to be kind of chubby, and then dieted down to underweight, and am struggling to maintain at some level of "thin." Anyway, I find that there's the brain hunger, which I attribute mostly to leptin and my body defending a weight much higher than I'm at, and then there's low blood sugar hungry. The first I just have to power through with (sucks). The second I can regulate with how I eat my carbs and alternating high fat/protein weeks. – Krisha C. Jan 10 2012 at 14:19
P.S. I've been way below my chubby weight for like 3 years now, and have also not found a cure for the brain hungry. So, yeah, anyone find a cure for that, nobel prize for you! – Krisha C. Jan 10 2012 at 14:20
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I think you make a good point Krisha. People do need to figure out the differences in the feelings they call hunger. Unfortunately for me this is real physical hunger from an empty stomach. My leptin is just fine and dandy. It's not my brain it's my belly. I just try to go as high volume as I can while keeping everything else as low as I can. I still search for some magic combo but so far it has eluded me. – Shari Bambino Jan 10 2012 at 17:26
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I work out at Crossfit 4-5 times per week and play tennis another 2+ times per week.

There's your answer right there. You have a tremendously high activity level.

Update: Sean just beat me to it!

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he did - but thanks -) – Lynn Jan 10 2012 at 12:05
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Lynn, you didn't mention what eating pattern you changed from, whether you are relatively lean or have excess body fat and how much fat you're eating.

For many who are fairly new to ancestral eating, it helps to start the day with a meal that includes plenty of both protein and fat. Your carb additions may vary based on your level of body fat, metabolic patterns, activity, etc.

My answer to your question is No. I'm usually done eating for the day by about 5 pm and don't eat again until 10am-noon. I exercise in a fasted state and suffer no hunger. However, I have more than adequate fat stores to release and burn--if you don't, you may simply need to eat more nourishing food when you're hungry. If you have plenty of stored energy and no known metabolic issues, you could be feeling emotional eating possibly related to past consumption of processed carbs.

Hope you find a more comfortable food mix soon!

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For me I find myself always hungry if I"m eating a lot of sugary carbs. fruits. Sweet potatoes and Plantains don't seem to do it as bad. If I cheat and have some raisins my appetite goes crazy. Carbs in general can drive my appetite but fruits have the biggest affect.

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Lynn, How many calories are you having? When I first switched to paleo, I was not eating enough calories.

Edit: a few days of a sample diet plus goals(lose fat, add muscle,improve performance,etc.) would be really helpful.

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I honestly don't know - maybe I can track a few days and see. . . – Lynn Jan 10 2012 at 12:03
i would just have a food log for a few days. It would make everything much easier, you could be burning a lot more calories than expending or you could be deficient in a macronutrient. Its hard to speculate – Michael RB Jan 10 2012 at 13:01
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Sounds like you are not eating enough carbs for such a high activity level. No, veggies don't count, eat something denser in the carb department. There seems to be this general trend on here with crossfitters decreasing their carbs more and more and bumping up their activity at the same time. Like putting less and less gas into your car's tank at each station yet trying to cover greater distances each time. I don't get why people like burning themselves out. You want to prevent spiking your cortisol further and other stuff which steers you away from your goals, so eat up them carbs.

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If your weight is stable, the fact that you are eating so much is fine, right?

I'm perhaps slightly broken metabolically, so my experience is that eating begets hunger. But also that if I'm hungry, all I need to do is get distracted by anything and the hunger goes away for a while. So if you do want to eat less, you might try IF. Wake up late, head straight into your day and be busy and distracted, and then you can eat a moderate lunch, stopping when you've eaten the right amount. If you're still hungry, know that even if you ate more you'd still be hungry, so might as well stop. Again if your day is busy you may be able to make it to dinner. Eat a big but not huge dinner and brush your teeth (or the primal equivalent!) right away so you won't be tempted to snack. If you do eat only twice per day, make sure to eat enough.

Anyway, that's what I do and it keeps my caloric intake reasonable. Frankly, I feel less hungry this way, since more eating just makes me want to eat yet more.

n=1, but hope this helps.

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I'm ultra-low carb and I don't get hungry but once a day. Fat satiates me, I not proteins. It's the same with other carnivores, I'm sure. Ditch the carbs. Get on the ketonic metabolwagon.

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She really cannot get on the keto bandwagon if she is doing metcons 5 times a week. – Michael RB Jan 10 2012 at 12:59
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Eat. Just.. eat. Best advice ever:

By removing grains, legumes, dairy, and refined sugar, you've removed potent calorie sources. Be sure to make up for those calories by eating enough protein and fat. You cannot expect be satisfied with an egg or two and a few veggies for breakfast if you expect that breakfast to last you any more than a few hours. You need to be eating enough. Don't throw hunger pangs on top of cravings for foods that you've removed from your diet. If you're starving you're much more likely to satisfy said cravings. Try combining 2 or more animal protein sources in meals and be sure that you have enough calories coming in. A good drizzle of olive oil or a small handful of nuts added to a meal can make all the difference.

It took me several months to figure it all out and have gone from 6-meals a day to 2.. and occasionally more due to lady times, an insanely huge workout, etc. It will get better when it all comes together, k? I promise.

Note: I CF 4-5 days a week.

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Thanks!! I have started to add a spoonful of cocount oil into my morning smoothie - hopefully that will get me off to a better start!! – Lynn Jan 12 2012 at 12:12
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I find myself in the same situation all the time. What has helped me is slamming 20oz of water right after the meal. Sometimes I'll do a cup or two of Almond milk instead. Either or, the liquid is taking up a little more volume and making me feel a little more full. I'll also get up and distract myself for the next 10-15 minutes and the hunger is all but gone.

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Eat more energy. By energy, I mean saturated fat, starch, or sugar. Veggies don't count for calories unless they're starchy. Fruit is calorie lights so you need high volume if you want that to be a main calorie source (ex. 10 bananas is one meal). A good way to increase calories quickly is with eggnog. If you're dairy-free then make coconut eggnog with some coconut milk you dilute with water (1 can with 1 1/4 cup of water makes a quart of milk-like consistency) plus a ton of egg yolks.

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Im not sure but could you be stressing yourself to much while lacking sleep or proper rest. I know when I over train I cant seem to stop eating. And when this happens I do not gain any body fat, although I gain weight from all the food sitting in my stomach. When Im properly rested I can go with just 2 big meals a day. I think it's important to figure this out as snacking is not that great for your liver and you should idealy not have this urge to eat all the time. Im an elite cyclist and train 10 to 15 hours a week! It could also have to do with the carbs you are eating but I don't know. Try getting more rest and really listen to your body. You shouldn't need to snack and I use it as a sign that I am working to hard and I need to take a day off. Hopefully this helps and let me know if you try it out!

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